Contraception

Contraception
and fertility are usually not words used in the same sentence.
Fertility Today magazine will address issues of contraceptives
that may affect, influence or put your fertility at risk.
As with most diseases or disorders, prevention is better
than finding a cure. Often preventing infertility is much
easier and better than treating it! What can you do to
reduce the risk of being infertile ?

The biggest preventable danger to fertility is due to
uncontrolled sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) such
as syphilis, gonorrhea and Chlamydia These can cause irreparable
damage to the reproductive tract in both men and women.
STDs can be prevented by:

Being informed and aware of the risks they pose.

Not engaging in promiscuous sexual activity. Abstinence
or monogamy is safest!

Using condoms if there is more than one sexual partner.

Testing for STD if you are at risk

Early and thorough treatment for STDs. This includes:
careful follow-up; testing for cure; and screening of
sexual partners.

Often, couples will want to postpone childbearing after
marriage. Contraception can also pose a hazard to future
fertility, if not selected carefully.

IUDs should not be used in women who are at risk for
STDs because they increase the risk of pelvic inflammation;
and it may be a good idea not to use IUDs in women who
have never conceived.

Oral contraceptives usually have no direct effect on
fertility at all. However, women who have irregular
anovulatory cycles before taking the pill will find
that their irregular cycles return once they stop the
pill and they may need treatment for this.

The use of depot contraceptives (such as Norplant )
can interfere with the resumption of ovulation, causing
infertility.

Sterilization (tubal ligation and vasectomy ) as a method
of family planning should be offered only to patients
who are sure they have completed their families; have
received adequate counseling; and whose children have
reached adulthood.

Excerpts from the book How to Have a Baby:
Overcoming Infertility
by Dr. Aniruddha Malpani, MD and Dr. Anjali Malpani, MD.